This drink recipe may be a teeny bit premature. I usually associate watermelon with the dog days of summer; not the days that teeter between spring and summer. I blame the sweet smell of watermelon!

As I was strolling through my local grocery store earlier this week, I was lured by its smell. There was a whole stand of really beautiful-looking seedless watermelon, so I simply couldn’t resist. At first I just took just a quarter of a watermelon home, ate a slice and blended the rest to make a single glass of watermelon juice.

Once I downed the first cold glass of watermelon juice, I was bummed there wasn’t more. The next day I returned, but instead of making the mistake of just buying a quarter, I bought a gigantic 6-pound watermelon. In the past, I’ve usually made a simple syrup to add to the watermelon puree but this year I found it to be completely unnecessary. Perhaps it was just a fluke, or I had a really great watermelon, so feel free to play around with the sugar content, adding as little to none or up to 1/2 cup. It’s entirely up to your taste buds, but just make sure each glass is filled to the brim with ice and straw is nearby.

Watermelon Agua Fresca

Blend up watermelon, sugar, and water for a perfect Summer treat you can make in just minutes from Adrianna Adarme from the Fresh Tastes blog.

Ingredients

• 6 pound watermelon, chopped into cubes
• 2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup of sugar (optional)
• 1/4 cup water

Directions

1. In batches (unless your blender is huge), add the chopped watermelon. Add a splash of water (about 2 tablespoons) and pulse until completely pureed, about 1 minute. (If you're adding a bit of sugar, you'll want to add the sugar amount you desire and just as much water to a small saucepan; heat until the sugar dissolves and then add the sugar/water mixture to the blender.)
2. Line a sieve with a few layers of cheese cloth. Place the sieve atop a bowl or large pitcher. Pour the watermelon puree into the cheese cloth and allow to strain--it may take around 5 minutes or so. 
3. Repeat the blending and straining process with the remaining chopped watermelon. Transfer the watermelon juice to the refrigerator for 1 hour to chill. Divide the watermelon juice amongst glasses.

Yield: Makes 6 glasses of watermelon juice

Adrianna Adarme is a food blogger and author living in Los Angeles, California. She writes the blog A Cozy Kitchen, where she shares comforting, everyday recipes from her kitchen. She recently authored her first cookbook, PANCAKES: 72 Sweet and Savory Recipes for the Perfect Stack. She’s a lover of breakfast, pie (and sometimes even pie for breakfast), corgis and cute things. You can find her on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.